chocolate whisky cake

It was the boy's birthday a couple of days ago, and I was thinking about baking a flourless chocolate cake (one of his favourites, and a recipe I still have to post...) but he happened to ask if I could use whisky in any of my baking as there was a bottle he wasn't quite fond of. Of course I couldn't resist, and an hour later I managed to find this recipe. It's actually a rather huge cake, and I couldn't bring myself to bake the entire thing, so I adjusted all the measurements by 2/3 (note 3 eggs were used in the original recipe, hence the slightly odd division) and decided to bake it in my largest circular tin (which I think is 23cm) for about 50 minutes. I checked the cake a bit beforehand as it was looking rather done, and the skewer came out dry (or at least I'm pretty sure it did - as usual I was multi tasking at the time so I can't say definitively that it did) so I took it out as I was afraid of overbaking it. When we tasted it after it had cooled, it was *very* moist, making me wonder what it would have been like if I'd left it in the oven for longer. No matter though, as the cake was pretty similar in texture to the flourless chocolate cake, and had the same rich chocolate taste except with the noticeable addition of the whisky.
I ended up having just enough whisky for the cake :)

Verdict: Deliciously moist and alcoholic
Score: 9/10

2 sticks (8 oz.) unsalted butter, softened, plus more for the pan 2 cups all-purpose flour, plus more for the pan 5 oz. unsweetened chocolate ¼ cup instant espresso powder 2 Tbsp. unsweetened cocoa powder 1 cup bourbon, rye, or other whiskey, plus more for sprinkling ½ tsp. kosher salt 2 cups granulated sugar 3 large eggs 1 Tbsp. vanilla extract 1 tsp. baking soda Confectioners’ sugar, for garnish (optional) Preheat oven to 325°F. Grease and flour a 10-cup-capacity Bundt pan (or two 8- or 9-inch loaf pans). In a heatproof bowl set over – but not touching – a saucepan of simmering water, melt the chocolate until just smooth, stirring occasionally. Let cool. Put espresso and cocoa powders in a 2-cup (or larger) glass measuring cup. Add enough boiling water to come up to the 1 cup measuring line. Stir until the powders dissolve. Add the whiskey and salt. Let cool. Using an electric mixer, beat the butter until fluffy. Add the sugar, and beat until well combined. Add the eggs one at a time, beating well after each addition. Beat in the vanilla extract, baking soda and melted chocolate, scraping down the sides of the bowl with a rubber spatula. With the mixer on low speed, beat in a third of the whiskey mixture. When liquid is absorbed, beat in 1 cup flour. Repeat additions, ending with the whiskey mixture. It may seem like there is too much liquid, but don’t worry; it’s okay. Scrape the batter into the prepared pan, and smooth the top. Bake until a toothpick inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean, about 1 hour and 10 minutes for a Bundt pan. (Loaf pans will take less time; start checking them after 55 minutes.) Transfer the cake, still in its pan, to a rack. Unmold after 15 minutes and sprinkle warm cake with more whiskey. (I did this by pouring a little bit into a teaspoon, and then shaking the teaspoon over the cake. I’m guessing that I used 3 teaspoons’ worth in all.) Cool completely before serving, garnished with confectioners’ sugar, if you like.

chocolate cake

I was in Australia recently, and while on a grocery shopping trip with my mum in Coles I spotted a can of dutch processed cocoa powder. This was an extremely significant find for me, because until that moment I had never been able to find dutch processed cocoa in any supermarket in London, not even Wholefoods. All the recipes I'd tried using natural cocoa powder always turned out a light brown (refer to the Sydney Girls' High brown) even though a lot of the time the picture was a really dark chocolatey brown, and it wasn't only disappointing in looks but in taste also. A number of cocoa recipes later, I suspected the difference in colour was down to my use of natural cocoa powder instead of dutch processed and eventually I started to avoid chocolate cake recipes using cocoa knowing that my cake would never really turn out as chocolatey as I desired.

I wish I'd come back to London with at least 3 cans of dutch processed instead of the measly 1 can I bought, because after trying this recipe I knew that I would only ever use dutch processed from now on, and not natural - they are definitely not interchangeable. The flavour is so much richer and more intense than natural cocoa powder. Dutch processed cocoa powder is for dark chocolate lovers, and will never fail to satisfy a craving for chocolate cake.

Verdict: A most excellent use of dutch processed cocoa powder
Score: 10/10

1/2 cup (1 stick or 4 ounces) unsalted butter, softened 1 cup (6 7/8 ounces) firmly packed light brown sugar 1/2 cup (4 ounces) granulated sugar 1 large egg, at room temperature 1 cup buttermilk 1 teaspoon vanilla extract 1 1/2 cups (6 3/4 ounces) all-purpose flour 3/4 cup (2 5/8 ounces) Dutch cocoa powder (see above for a natural cocoa adjustment) 1/4 teaspoon baking soda 1/2 teaspoon baking powder 1/4 teaspoon salt Preheat the oven to 325°F. Butter and lightly flour a 9x5x3-inch loaf pan, or spray it with a butter-flour spray. In a large bowl, on the medium speed of an electric mixer, cream the butter until smooth. Add the sugars and beat until fluffy, about 3 minutes. Add the egg and beat well, then the buttermilk and vanilla. Don’t worry if the batter looks a little uneven. Sift the flour, cocoa, baking soda, baking powder and salt together right into your wet ingredients. Stir together with a spoon until well-blended but do not overmix. Scrape down the batter in the bowl, making sure the ingredients are well blended. Pour the batter into the prepared loaf pan. Bake for 60 to 70 minutes, or until a cake tester inserted into the center of the loaf comes out clean. Cool in pan on a rack for about 10 to 15 minutes, at which point you can cool it the rest of the way out of the pan.

chocolate chip cake

When I saw this recipe I felt compelled to try it. So, armed with 2 tubs of sour cream in the fridge, I attempted it. I halved the recipe, and it seems that 2/3 of a tub of sour cream equates to 2/3 of a cup of sour cream, which means I ended up baking this cake 2 times with enough to spare for a third time, but decided that would be excessive so I used the remainder in this recipe instead. I like to think it's a little bit healthier than normal butter cakes, because there isn't as much butter as normal, but the cake is still very moist because of the sour cream. And sour cream is healthier than butter right? :)

Verdict: Delicious, and can I convince you (and me) it's healthier?
Score: 9/10

Chocolate Chip Sour Cream Coffee Cake Cake 1/2 cup unsalted butter (1 stick, 4 ounces or 113 grams) at room temperature 1 1/2 cups (300 grams) granulated sugar 3 large eggs, separated 1 1/2 teaspoons vanilla extract 2 cups (16 ounces) sour cream 3 cups (375 grams) all-purpose flour 1 teaspoon baking powder 1 1/2 teaspoons baking soda 3/4 teaspoon table salt Filling and Topping 2 cups or 12 ounces semi- or bittersweet chocolate chips or coarsely chopped chocolate bars 1/2 cup (100 grams) granulated sugar 1 teaspoon cinnamon Preheat oven to 350°F. Butter a 9-x-13-inch baking pan. If not nonstick coated, cover the bottom with a rectangle of parchment paper. Set pan aside. In a large bowl, cream butter and 1 1/2 cups sugar. Beat in egg yolks and vanilla. Sift flour, baking soda, baking powder and salt together into a separate bowl. Alternately mix in sour cream and then dry ingredients into butter mixture until both are used up and the batter is smooth and very thick. In a medium bowl, beat eggs whites until stiff, then fold into batter. In a small dish, whisk together sugar and cinnamon for filling and topping. Spread half the cake batter in the bottom of prepared pan. Sprinkle with half of cinnamon-sugar mixture and 1 cup of chocolate chips. Dollop remaining cake batter over filling in spoonfuls. Use a rubber or offset spatula to gently spread it over the filling and smooth the top. Sprinkle batter with remaining cinnamon-sugar and remaining chocolate chips. With the palm of your hand, ever-so-gently press the chocolate chips a bit into the batter. No need to submerge them, you just want to make sure they adhere bit. Bake for 40 to 50 minutes, rotating halfway through, until a tester inserted into the center of the cake comes out clean.

another madeira cake

I baked this madeira cake (or pound cake - I don't think they're entirely interchangeable terms, but to me they're pretty much the same) a few weeks ago - I didn't even have any inkling of a craving for madeira cake like I did last year. My feeble excuse for madeira cake this time was because I didn't want to waste the zest of the lemon sitting in my fridge. However, this led to the discovery of a pretty awesome cake.
Original recipe below, however I halved the recipe, and used brandy instead of cognac.

Verdict: This cake is delicious, and is amazingly even better with each day it ages!
Score: 10/10

1/2 pound (2 sticks or 8 ounces or 226 grams) butter, at room temperature, plus more for greasing the pan 1 1/2 cups (200 grams) all-purpose flour, plus more for dusting the pan 1/2 teaspoon (3 grams) baking powder Salt 4 large eggs, separated 3/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons (186 grams) sugar 1 tablespoon Cognac [brandy works as well, as does rum, as would one teaspoon of an extract of your choice] 1 1/2 teaspoons grated lemon zest. 1. Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Butter and flour a loaf pan. Sift the flour onto waxed paper and then spoon it gently back into the sifter, adding the baking powder and a good pinch of salt. Sift the mixture twice more, each time spooning it lightly into the sifter. [I know what you must be thinking: Beard expect me to sift my dry ingredients three times? But oh, it lends to the most delicate, light crumb and texture. Don't skimp!] 2. Using an electric mixer, whip the egg whites until they hold soft peaks and then gradually beat in 1/2 cup (100 grams) of the sugar, two tablespoons at a time. Transfer to a bowl. 3. Fit the electric mixer with a paddle attachment and cream the butter until light and fluffy. Beat in the remaining six tablespoons (86 grams) of sugar until fluffy. Beat in the egg yolks until light and lemon-colored and then add the Cognac and zest. 4. Gradually fold the sifted flour mixture into the butter-egg mixture. Fold in the beaten egg whites just until the batter is smooth. Pour batter into the prepared pan and bake in the oven for 35 to 45 minutes or until a toothpick pierced in the center comes up clean. Cool in pan ten minutes on a rack, then cool the rest of the way out of the pan.